Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart may have given some insight into Nick Saban’s future in football Friday, when he said Saban was “driven” to be the greatest coach in the history of the game.

“No question,” Smart said. “He’s driven to be the best.”

That, in relation to Alabama, means he still has a few obstacles to overcome before he rises past Paul “Bear” Bryant. And if you’re reading into that, even another national championship on Monday wouldn’t elevate him to The Bear’s status among Tide faithful.

But he’d be a heckuva lot closer than anyone in gingham would ever have imagined. If the Tide wins its third national title in four seasons, Saban will become the first Alabama coach to accomplish that feat.

He’d still trail Bryant in national championships (6-4; Saban also has one from LSU in 2003), but would be within striking distance of encroaching on the holy ground that is Alabama reverence of Bryant.

He would also tie legendary Notre Dame coach Frank Leahy and Southern Cal's John McKay as the only coaches with four national titles.

So think about that when you’re wondering if Saban will leave for the NFL one more time.

IN THE HUDDLE

We officially have it, everyone. The first statement turned into trash talk turned into overreaction.

Notre Dame’s Theo Riddick said he believes the Irish can throw on the Alabama defense because—deep breath, people—the Tide play man coverage.

Such a coverage will allow ND quarterback Everett Golson the chance to break containment, receivers to break off routes and plays to develop.

“We can take advantage of their secondary,” Riddick said.

This, of course, didn’t sit well with Tide fans on Twitterverse. Nor with Alabama players.

“I don’t see any reason to do any trash talk,” said Alabama cornerback Dee Millner. “You should let your play on the field do the talking.”

The reality is Alabama has struggled at times in coverage this season with a revamped secondary, and had significant issues in the last month of the season against LSU, Texas A&M and Georgia.

Then there’s the Notre Dame passing game: Once a huge issue, it developed more consistency over the second half of the season as Golson played with more confidence.

THAT'S RIGHT, HE SAID IT

Alabama linebacker Nick Johnson: “(Notre Dame) could play in the SEC. There is no difference.”

THREE AND OUT

1. Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart had numbers run and says that of all those who play college football, less than 0.6 percent get the chance to play for a national championship. “It’s very rare you can play for one,” Johnson said. “And some of us on this team have had the opportunity to play for three. What do we want our legacy to be? What will we be remembered for?”

2. Every bowl season is the same mantra: If you give Saban X number of weeks to prepare, it’s nearly impossible to beat one of his teams. The game plan, Alabama players say, was set before the team arrived in Miami. Now it’s just fine-tuning. “You can’t get too excited too early down here,” said Alabama safety Robert Lester. “It’s just a matter of holding it back until game day, and then letting loose.”

3. Now we’re going to make that aforementioned “bulletin board material” look even worse: The Tide is No.4 in the nation—out of 124 teams—in pass defense, trailing No.1 Nebraska, Michigan and Florida State.

The cynic, of course, will say Nebraska gave up five touchdown passes to Georgia in the Capital One Bowl, and Michigan gave up a last-second heave for a touchdown in a loss to South Carolina in the Outback Bowl. So why can’t statistics be misleading?